The long short ride

It was supposed to rain all weekend, but I woke up Saturday morning to find it thickly overcast, after only a light drizzle Friday night. I had really wanted to try to get a 100-mile ride in over the weekend. Seeing this as my window of opportunity, I sprang into action!

I got through the first few miles with little more than a light mist. It was actually nice as the cloud cover had kept the temperatures down into the low sixties: great riding weather. The sky looked cloudy, but not heavy, and I had the Holy Grail of long rides developing: a tailwind on the way home!

Much like day sailing, where you're well advised to head out into the wind in the morning so you are just cruising back in the afternoon. Instead of fighting out the tacks to get back up wind when you're tired, you just sheet out the mainsail and the genoa, grab a beer, and head for the marina.

And, although the beer is not the way to go heading home, its a great thing to have the wind to your back when you're headed home with five hours in the saddle under your belt. At one point, it was actually getting warm enough that I was starting to get slicked in sweat. They do a lot of business in cotton in Central Texas. I know this because it was about this time that I got passed by a "empty" tractor-trailer that was spewing cotton chunks everywhere. After it passed, I looked down and saw that my legs and arms were coated with fuzzy, white cotton. I must have looked like a flocked Christmas tree; where's a camera when you need it?

Anyhow, I was headed south toward Elgin and I had planned on stopping for water, doing a small loop to get the 10 or so miles I needed to get to 100, and then heading home. The crosswind that would be my homeward-bound tailwind was still blowing and the clouds in its direction or origin still looked unthreatening. Unfortunately, there were very dark clouds forming in the direction of my route home.

I considered heading straight home, rather than looping the additional miles, and just seizing the good luck that had gotten me the dry miles thusfar. One of Darlene's infamous phrases seemed to fit the occasion: "Don't kick [sic] a gift horse in the mouth." No sooner had I marveled at the malapropism that the thunder started roaring from the cloud pattern that clouded my escape home. Envisioning myself utilizing my homebound tailwind and catching the tail of this storm, then trailing it all the way home like some Charlie Brown character where the little cloud follows them everywhere, the extra loop gained some appeal.

Unfortunately, two miles from Elgin and the nearest dry place, the seemingly innocent clouds lurking upstream in my tailwind surrounded me like multiple felon and started peppering me with huge drops. I'm not one to be overly concerned about riding in the rain, save the discontent that each rain ride requires about an hour of bike cleaning and working the wet out of the bearings. However, the lightning that, by my count was getting closer all the time, was starting to freak me out. Riding a metal object in a lightning storm is up there with swimming in Australia with the seals. Maybe this is my argument for my next carbon fiber bike, Darlene...

I skidded into a Chevron in Elgin where they served hot coffee, and my wonderful wife was kind enough to come get me. This saved me from the last 30 miles in torrential downpour that didn't let up for our entire drive home.

At least I got 70 miles in...